in between Saturday

Good afternoon,

The In-between Saturday

The Apostle's Creed

 I believe in God, the Father Almighty,

        creator of heaven and earth.

 I believe in Jesus Christ, God's Son, our Lord

        who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,

           born of the Virgin Mary,

           suffered under Pontius Pilate,

           was crucified , died and was buried ;

       he descended to the dead.

       On the third day he rose again;

       he ascended into heaven,

       he is seated at the right hand of the Father,

       and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.

 I believe in the Holy Spirit,

       the holy catholic church,

       the communion of saints,

       the forgiveness of sins,

       the resurrection of the body,

       and the life everlasting.

This creed is in the back of our blue hymnal, but we do not recite it very often. We say the Lord's Prayer ( if only I could remember it all the time ) every Sunday. The creed is an old one. It comes from the earliest part of the church's history, late fourth century . It took the church, the eastern and western parts, a long time to agree on the words. The church was all over the Empire, speaking different languages and having different understandings of God, Jesus and Holy Spirit. It is hard to put all what you believe into a few words that we can all agree on.

" He descended to the dead. " After Jesus died, he went down to the depths of darkness, hell, and stayed for three days ( it depends how you count ). We know nothing more about what this time was like for Jesus, and for the world during those three days. On earth, after Jesus died, the temple curtain was torn, the rocks cracked open and people were raised from their graves. The early church believed that Jesus went down to the place of the dead, to liberate the good people from eternity.

But how did the disciples live in the in-between time ? They were terrified, hiding behind doors, waiting to be arrested. Their leader, mentor and saviour was gone, and what  were they going to do now. Joseph and Nicodemus, buried the body on the same day. The women prepared the spices, so that they could give Jesus a decent and faithful burial.

What are we doing, in the in-between time, as we sit at home, wait and wonder what the world will look like in May, June and beyond ? The disciples were afraid. We do not know what the future of our jobs or the life of the church might look like. How are you afraid ? Have you told God about your fears ?

Prayer for the In-Between Time

 But now, God’s Message,

    the God who made you in the first place, Jacob,

    the One who got you started, Israel:

“Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you.

    I’ve called your name. You’re mine.

When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you.

    When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down.

When you’re between a rock and a hard place,

    it won’t be a dead end—

Because I am God, your personal God,

    The Holy of Israel, your Saviour.

I paid a huge price for you:

    all of Egypt, with rich Cush and Seba thrown in!

That’s how much you mean to me!

    That’s how much I love you!

I’d sell off the whole world to get you back,

    trade the creation just for you.                   Isaiah 43:1-4    ( from The Message )

Hope and blessing into our life and faith.

Fred